Iko Iko - Recording History

Recording History

The Dixie Cups, who had learned "Iko, Iko" from hearing their grandmother sing it, also knew little about the origin of the song and so the original authorship credit went to the members, Barbara Ann Hawkins, her sister Rosa Lee Hawkins, and their cousin Joan Marie Johnson.

After the Dixie Cups version of the "Iko Iko" was released in 1965, they and their record label, Red Bird Records, were sued by James Crawford, who claimed that "Iko Iko" was the same as his composition "Jock-a-mo." Although The Dixie Cups denied that the two compositions were similar, the lawsuit resulted in a settlement in 1967 with Crawford making no claim to authorship or ownership of "Iko Iko", but being credited 25% for public performances, such as on radio, of "Iko Iko" in the United States. Even though a back-to-back listening of the two recordings clearly demonstrates that "Iko Iko" was practically the same song as Crawford's "Jock-a-mo", Crawford's rationale for the settlement was motivated by years of legal battles with no royalties. In the end, he stated, "I don’t even know if I really am getting my just dues. I just figure 50 percent of something is better than 100 percent of nothing."

In the 1990s, the Dixie Cups became aware that another group of people were claiming authorship of "Iko Iko." Their ex-manager Joe Jones and his family filed a copyright registration in 1991, alleging that they wrote the song in 1963. Joe Jones successfully licensed "Iko Iko" outside of North America, and it was used as the soundtrack of Mission Impossible 2 in 2000. The Dixie Cups filed a lawsuit against Joe Jones. The trial took place in New Orleans and the Dixie Cups were represented by well-known music attorney Oren Warshavsky before Senior Federal Judge Peter Beer.

The jury returned a unanimous verdict on March 6, 2002, affirming that the Dixie Cups were the only writers of "Iko Iko" and granting them more money than they were seeking. The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the jury verdict and sanctioned Joe Jones.

The song is regularly performed by artists from New Orleans such as the Neville Brothers (who have recorded it in a medley with the melodically-related Mardi Gras song "Brother John" as "Brother John/Iko Iko"), Larry Williams, Dr. John, The Radiators, Willy DeVille, Buckwheat Zydeco, and Zachary Richard, and can often be heard on the streets and in the bars of New Orleans, especially during Mardi Gras.

It has been also been covered by Cyndi Lauper, the Grateful Dead (who made "Iko Iko" a staple in their live shows from 1977 onward), Cowboy Mouth, Warren Zevon, Long John Baldry, Dave Matthews & Friends, The Ordinary Boys, Glass Candy, and Sharon, Lois & Bram, among others. Amy Holland covered the song on the soundtrack of the film K-9, Aaron Carter covered the song for 2000's The Little Vampire soundtrack and filmed a music video for it. the Dixie Cups performed the song on the soundtrack of the film The Skeleton Key and The Belle Stars' cover was featured in the films Rain Man, Knockin' on Heaven's Door and The Hangover. Justine Bateman, Julia Roberts, Britta Phillips and Trini Alvarado perform the song in the 1988 film Satisfaction. A later version by Zap Mama, with rewritten lyrics, was featured in the opening sequences of the film Mission: Impossible II. Eurodance act Captain Jack re-popularized the tune in Germany in 2001.

Rolf Harris in 1965 recorded a cover version with slightly altered words, removing references to "flag boys" and other regionally specific lyrics, although much of the creole patois remained as a sort of nonsense scat. This version made the song popular in England and Australia in the 1960s.

The song's most successful UK version was that of singer Natasha England, who took it into the top 10 in 1982. Her version, released the same week as The Belle Stars's recording, charted higher and significantly outsold their rival version. The Belle Stars version would be released in the United States in 1988, where it would peak at 14 on the Billboard Hot 100 in March 1989, outcharting the Dixie Cups' version. The England's recording was produced by Tom Newman ("Tubular Bells").